Numbers speak louder than words. And as an email marketer, you have to learn the hard truth that subjective opinions don’t stand a chance against actual stats. So we’ve compiled 20 email marketing statistics you need to remember in 2023 to get and stay on top.
1. 89% of marketers use email as the main channel for generating leads.
Source: Capterra
A whopping 89% of marketers said that email is their main lead generation channel. We all know lead generation is the bread and butter of marketing, but this 2015 statistic proves that in most cases your email marketing efforts reflect directly on your business growth.
2. Email marketing has an ROI of 4400%.
Source: CampaignMonitor
Yes, email marketing is still the “king of the marketing kingdom” with $44 for every $1 spent. Email marketing is not overhyped – it delivers stellar results and is not likely to be overtaken by anything else in the nearest future. Most marketers’ biggest concern is that email marketing just seems too old-school now, especially with SMM growing larger and larger each year. But, as you can see, these worries are constantly proven to be false.
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3. Most subscribers (61%) would like to receive promotional emails every week, 38% — more frequently.
Source:MarketingSherpa
The contrast in numbers is even greater when you look at specific frequencies: 86% of responders want to receive emails at least monthly, while 15% want to receive promo emails every day. As you can understand, segmentation, in this case, is the key – make sure to give your subscribers an option to choose the preferred email frequency for best open and click-through rates.
4. 40% want their emails to be informative rather than promotive.
Source: Adobe
Not to say “water is wet”, but water is wet, people! But as much as we may think statistics like these are pointless and unnecessary (don’t we all know subscribers prefer informative content over promos?), there’s value in “obvious” studies like this one. They help cement the unspoken truths we’re all aware of.
5. List segmentation (51%), individualized email sending (50%), and behavior-triggered emails (45%) are the three most effective personalization tactics.
Source: Ascend2
A recent study found that marketers can get the best personalization results with the help of email list segmentation, individualized sending and triggered emails.
Luckily, you can carry out all three tasks in an email drip campaign. Personalization is much more than just inserting name variables into your email copy. Try to really understand your subscribers and treat them as an individual (not a lead) for best results.
6. Signatures with a photo get 32% more replies than the ones without it.
Source: WiseStamp
Humanizing your business account helps build better relationships and it’s now been statistically proven. Too many businesses think personalization is about making your email copy sound human, but making yourself seem human is a great part of personalization as well. So don’t wait – give your business a face.
7. In 2018, nearly 1 of 5 email campaigns wasn’t optimized for mobile devices.
Source: Super Office
Nearly 20% of B2B email marketing campaigns weren’t optimized for mobile last year. Depending on whether you understand the importance of mobile optimization, this statistic might make you nervous or angry, so let us just remind you about something. A study by Adestra highlights the fact that in 70%(!) of cases if the message doesn’t display correctly, the reader will delete it within three seconds. That’s SEVENTY PERCENT!
8. 80% of non-mobile-friendly emails end up in the trash folder.
Source: Bluehornet
While 70% of non-optimized emails get deleted in the first three seconds, the actual number is even higher. Just think of how much time you spend on your phone. When you can reach someone through a channel that takes up so much of person’s time, you should never miss that chance. And it’s not just about the open rate. Check out the next one…
9. 30% of unsubscribers do it because the emails are not optimized for mobiles.
Source: Bluehornet
Another statistic from Bluehornet shows that lack of mobile optimization can not only ruin your campaign results also but considerably shrink your subscriber list. We cannot stress this enough, people – always optimize your campaigns for mobile, and test-send before launching to make sure nothing is out of place.
10. On average, 51% of companies are currently using automation.
Source: EmailMonday
Email marketing is all about efficiency. Getting the right message to as many targeted leads as possible is the dream of every marketer. More and more automation tools are popping up and 51% of companies are taking advantage of them to save money and time. Even if you believe email marketing automation is not for you, we highly recommend giving it a try with even just one campaign to compare time, investment, and results to have factual proof.
11. 71% of consumers claim personalized experiences influence their decision to interact with emails.
Source: Dynamic Yield
Personalization influences the subscribers’ decision if they even want to interact with your emails. And that’s according to the subscribers themselves! This, once again, proves that personalization can improve your open and click-through rates.
12. The most frustrating things about personalization are recommendations of items that don’t match their interests (34%), expired offers (24%), name misspellings (15%), inappropriate season or location offer (14%), already purchased promotions (13%).
Source: Adobe
In the above-mentioned study by Adobe, subscribers had to identify the most annoying things about personalization they’ve encountered. Unsurprisingly, 34% have named recommendations that don’t match their interests as the main frustration. Most of the problems named by subscribers were due to faulty algorithms and incorrect/unverified data. Keep your data up-to-date and test, test, test!
13. 45% of recipients say that they “like brands that do not take themselves too seriously”.
Source: Foresight Factory
None of us likes having to act within rigid norms. After all, isn’t being human all about creating something new and having fun? Well, many email recipients agree the same is true for brands – 45% like it when companies are approachable, genuine, and human. To quote the study itself, “brands are invited to align with the struggles of customers, through sharing their own defeats, and by providing support and motivation for personal journeys.”
14. 68% of millennials use and prefer to see emojis, GIFs, and stickers in their emails; only 37% over 65 years agreed to this.
Source: Inc.com
An interesting article from Inc.com highlights the fact that 68% of millennials use and like seeing visual content like emojis, gifs, and stickers in their email. Surprising to no one, only 37% of people over 65 shares these views. Which for you as an email marketing freelancer or a general marketer, means one thing – segmentation! But also don’t be afraid to experiment – very often it really pays off.
15. An initial email with a video receives a CTR increase by 96%.
Source: WordStream
I want to share an interesting statistic with you. The initial emails with video content have an almost twice the CTR of those without videos. Don’t underestimate video content, people!
16. Open rate varies depending on the subject line length: 21% – 6-10 words, 16% – 0-5 words, 14% – 11-15 words, 12% – 16-20 words.
Source: Business2Community
Any article on subject lines touches upon the perfect subject line length. Some argue that it can be as long as you need it to be if you manage to make it intriguing enough for the recipient to open the email. However, numbers show a slightly different picture. If you keep your subject line between 6 and 10 words, your chances of getting a higher open rate are the best. But, of course, it’s not the size that matters, it’s how you use it.
17. Emails with discount codes and free shipping offers have 8 times higher chances to make a sale than those without any discounts.
Source: Kit
Another “water is wet” moment, but this needs to be said: providing even the smallest chance for your prospect to save money converts them better. You don’t have to go full Black Friday with 90% off, even 10% will do the trick. Free shipping is also a big advantage in the eyes of a potential customer.
18. The key day for emails is Thursday: Users send 16% of emails and the open rate remains about 20%.
Source: CoSchedule
Having researched this topic excessively, I can safely say the data doesn’t lie – Thursday is the best day to achieve the best email open rates. There’s just something about the almost-end-of-the-week charisma that makes people go through their inboxes more. See more comprehensive data that includes all known studies on email sending time.
19. The best time to send emails is from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m.
Source: OptinMonster
I once heard a wild theory that you should send emails at 2 a.m. because no one else will ever think of that and that means no competition. Well, don’t do that. 2 a.m. is actually one of the worst times for both open and click-through rates, and let’s not act surprised. Try to schedule your emails between 10 and 11 a.m., when people are at their most productive level.
20. 50% of marketers claim that there is no perfect time for sending email campaigns because every person and business is unique.
Source: Databox
I began this article by stating that numbers are more important than opinions, but when it’s a good opinion, why not share it? Half the marketers state that there is no perfect timing as every recipient is unique. I believe that’s true not just for timing, but for every single aspect of an email campaign. A segment, personalize, research, and, most importantly, care about your recipients. That’s the only way of maximizing your rates and building a great relationship with your prospects.
** Editor’s Note: This blog has been edited for clarity.
Disclaimer: This is a guest post by Dana Rudenko- Chief editor at Snov.io. The opinions and ideas expressed herein are author’s own, and in no way reflect Cloudways position.
Dana Rudenko
Dana Rudenko is the chief editor at Snov.io, researching the freshest marketing content and bringing exclusive insights from the world's most successful startups. In her free time you can find her creating playlists, gardening, or googling dogs in cowboy costumes.
